Would You Let Me See Beneath Your Beautiful (Jagara)

The sun was now gone and the rain havily poured down from the sky, the drops larger than normal, as he carried the light weight female upon his back courtly. A deep chuffing sound errupted from his belly and up to his throat as he followed her scent to her new home. The trail light and now masked by the water, but still he stumbed upon it, even with help from the dogs as the ran up the walk way. This was all new to him and it stunned him as he walked up to the opening. Leaning forward, he slid her off of his shoulders and shifted instantiously, then swooping her up into his his arms, he entered the den and carried her into her home. It was far from what he was used too, but, there was something about this place that he could find himself calling home. If he could woo and marry her like he only hoped too. Ariun smiled as he stood there, placing his hands within his pockets.

Jagara held onto Ariun as he carried her on his back, but was taken by surprise when she felt herself slide off of his slick, furry shoulders and into his arms, which seemed to radiate warmth under the rain. In fact, she was so surprised that she wriggled out of his grasp just as they entered her den, landing on four paws instead of two feet. The Epror looked about her den indifferently.“It’s not much… and I’m sure it’s not that cozy to the more tropical felines, so I apologize. I really have no need to keep it warm, as I am my own heater.” With graceful strides, she moved deeper into the cave, which was illuminated by a couple of natural skylights that, as of now, dripped water onto the stone floor.

The den was basically a crag-like cave in the side of a large rock formation with several small cubicula. One was her kitchen-like area, her spices and ingredients stored on a shelf. The room itself was like a refrigerator, much like the rest of the den. Another little room that sprouted from the main enclosure by a tunnel was her personal chamber. It had no moss or comfortable bedding, but rather a slab of weathered stone like she had slept on as a cub. There were other small, useless nooks and crannies to the cave, some of which were used as storage, others just stood there empty.

Looking to back to him, the snow leopardess smiled. “You look good in the dark.” There was something about how the scattered light sources bounced off his features that made him seem like a painting by an artist who masterfully played with lights and darks to produce an attractive, almost mysterious contrast. Her long tail swayed behind her against the ground while Arthas was keeping their other canine guest company by the entrance. As her grey-blue eyes examined the male, Jagara had to suppress a purr. In the deepest depths of her mind, she wondered what was going through Ariun’s mind and if it had anything to do with her.

*You look good in the dark* Her words resounded in his head, how sweet and tender her voice was as she adjusted to the quaint surroundings. The cave was larger than he expected as he was able to stand up in his human form with still plenty of feet above him as well as being able to shift and have plenty of room. Ariun couldn't help but think that not only himself and Jagara would have plenty of room, but surely there would be room for at least two pups. He could see them now, a boy and a girl, running happily around. Ariun was jumping the gun, he knew how they felt for each other, but he was still unsure of what would become of the two of them. There would only be one way to find out. Ariun took a deep breath, his heart racing, as he shifted from human to feline. A gentle purr came from his throat as he padded forward to the beautiful mistress. The moon illuminating her features, the white fur nearly glowing, the spots on her back standing out. It was then he lept upon her, his weight lightly pinning her body to the ground, as his face hovered above hers.

The sounds of breathing and chuffing filled the room, his heart pounded and he swore he could hear the echo through the cave. "Jagara, I wish nothing more than to spend the rest of my life with you. To please you, love you, and honor everything you do. I want nothing more to be the man that you awaken with every morning and fall asleep to each night. I want to be the man that would go to great lengths to make sure that your years here in this pack are cherished and cared for by providing you a home and family." He stopped for a moment to release her from his pin, still above her, his paws beside his head. Eyes locked into hers he continued, "To have you as my wife would be the greatest honor any man could ever ask for. To have you in my arms for the rest of my life would be the greatest accomplishment I could ever come by. I fear that if I don't have you in my life, my heart will break into pieces that nor any woman nor I would be able to place back together. I know that I have known you little time, but I feel that I have known you my whole life, and I have only been waiting for this moment to arrive. For me to express myself foolishly to you, to beg and plead you for your hand in marriage. For me to provide you with everything you could ever ask for and for you to bear me cubs in the future."

Ariun held his breath for a moment, at this point nothing was registering in his mind, he was speeking freely and truely to the woman he loved. "Although I can not explain it, I feel I have known you for years, known you in a past life, that we are soul mates destined to find one another, life after life. That no matter what happens, I will always find you, and I will always love you. I may sound foolish and crazy, but I will not stop until I have you in my arms forever. I promise that I shall stay faithful to you, as you are to me. We will live happily in this den and within the pack. There is nothing I want more than you, Jagara. Nothing. My own life is not worth living unless I can cook for you, love you, and have you be by my side until my life gives it's last breath. What do you say Jaraga, will you marry me?"

Snow leopards could be quite strange creatures at times, like many other felines. Though her natural, fighting instinct told her to kick off or dispatch anyone who attempted to pin her down, there was something she enjoyed about being trapped under Ariun. It was not a feeling of submission or degradation, but rather knowing that there was someone who wanted her and her presence. However, she did not expect that which followed.

Loud breaths and chuffs resonated off of the cave walls, not caring for the rain outside. As she looked up to the onyx panther, he seemed almost divine, backlit with the eerie white shine of the moon that filtered through the crags in the natural ceiling. When he spoke, and spoke rapidly at that, her heart began to grow wings and flutter around in her fur-covered chest. Feeling drawn into the pools of his eyes when she was released, she did not move a whisker, too hypnotized to do anything. His voice echoed in her head, but the image faded slightly, being overlapped by perhaps a dream or maybe a vision of the future- whichever one it was, she did not care. Stormy nights such as these spent in the arms of her love, wonderful, timeless days together through all of the weather and seasons, a couple of little cubs tugging on their tails and ears playfully later, and even their old forms still walking beside each other through a dark forest, pelts brushing and tails intertwined. A silence gripped her heart tight, building the tension inside of her. Ariun’s words were the release orders that sent it shooting against her sides, the sound of the pounding pulsing to her black-tipped ears.

But it was the final question that sent a wave of cold water over her burning insides, calming her to make a decision, or a reply at least. But how could Jagara reply, when Azeroth still roamed the heavens above, looking over her and waiting patiently? She closed her eyes slowly, breathing for a moment, only to feel a wide nose brush her ear affectionately. ‘My love for you will never be forgotten, but this cat can stay with you where I cannot. There is no need to fear for my heartbreak.’ There was never a moment in Jagara’s confident life when she was so sure of her decision. When her grey-blue gaze met his, it was filled with love and devotion. She curled her wide paws loosely around his neck and spoke with relaxed certainty, “ Oh Ariun… Nunc scio quid sit amor*… You have helped me accept what was long ago done, and so, you have conquered the demon that plagues me. You should know that I as well can no longer imagine a future without your presence, though it has not been long since I’ve met you. You. You are my dark-colored knight, my gentleman, my love, and now, with the blessing of the Regina, my husband and mate. And so I say this now: I will always be with you, and cannot refuse your proposal. Yes, Ariun, I will marry you. And I will love you beyond death, for not even death can overcome a force so powerful, though it may overcome me.”  Her long tail slithered its way around his, twining around it like a vine as she reached up and, at the same time, gently pulled his head down. Jagara locked the soft, black membranes of their lips in a passionate sealing kiss, her love for the male flowing through her, from tail to head, as a soft purr vibrated in her throat.

(( *Nunc scio quid sit amor…-Now I know what love is ))